Allocating digital channels associated with communications signals into assigned spectrum chunks in a wireless distribution system (WDS) based on determined utilization of processing resources

ABSTRACT

Embodiments of the disclosure relate to allocating digital channels into spectrum chunks in a wireless distribution system (WDS). In a WDS, a central unit is configured to communicate downlink and uplink communications signals with a plurality of remote units over a plurality of downlink and uplink communication links. In one aspect, discrete downlink channels in the downlink communications signals are grouped into downlink spectrum chunks at the central unit when the processing circuitry at the central unit is underutilized. In another aspect, discrete uplink channels in the uplink communications signals are grouped into uplink spectrum chunks at the remote units when the processing circuitries at the remote units are underutilized. By grouping discrete downlink channels into downlink spectrum chunks and/or grouping uplink discrete channels into uplink spectrum chunks, it is possible to optimize system resource utilization in the WDS, thus providing enhanced overall performance in the WDS.

PRIORITY APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.15/478,473, filed Apr. 4, 2017, which claims the benefit of priorityunder 35 U.S.C. § 119 of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/329,599,filed on Apr. 29, 2016, the contents of which are relied upon andincorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

BACKGROUND

The disclosure relates generally to a wireless distribution system(WDS), and more particularly to techniques for optimizing systemresources utilization within the WDS, such as a distributed antennasystem (DAS), as an example.

Wireless customers are increasingly demanding digital data services,such as streaming video signals. At the same time, some wirelesscustomers use their wireless communication devices in areas that arepoorly serviced by conventional cellular networks, such as insidecertain buildings or areas where there is little cellular coverage. Oneresponse to the intersection of these two concerns has been the use of aWDS. WDSs include remote units configured to receive and transmitcommunications signals to client devices within the antenna range of theremote units. WDSs can be particularly useful when deployed insidebuildings or other indoor environments where the wireless communicationdevices may not otherwise be able to effectively receive radio frequency(RF) signals from a source.

In this regard, FIG. 1 illustrates distribution of communicationsservices to remote coverage areas 100(1)-100(N) of a WDS 102, wherein‘N’ is the number of remote coverage areas. These communicationsservices can include cellular services, wireless services, such as RFidentification (RFID) tracking, Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi), local areanetwork (LAN), and wireless LAN (WLAN), wireless solutions (Bluetooth,Wi-Fi Global Positioning System (GPS) signal-based, and others) forlocation-based services, and combinations thereof, as examples. Theremote coverage areas 100(1)-100(N) may be remotely located. In thisregard, the remote coverage areas 100(1)-100(N) are created by andcentered on remote units 104(1)-104(N) connected to a head-end equipment(HEE) 106 (e.g., a head-end controller, a head-end unit, or a centralunit). The HEE 106 may be communicatively coupled to a signal source108, for example, a base transceiver station (BTS) or a baseband unit(BBU). In this regard, the HEE 106 receives downlink communicationssignals 110D from the signal source 108 to be distributed to the remoteunits 104(1)-104(N). The remote units 104(1)-104(N) are configured toreceive the downlink communications signals 110D from the HEE 106 over acommunications medium 112 to be distributed to the respective remotecoverage areas 100(1)-100(N) of the remote units 104(1)-104(N). In anon-limiting example, the communications medium 112 may be a wiredcommunications medium, a wireless communications medium, or an opticalfiber-based communications medium. Each of the remote units104(1)-104(N) may include an RF transmitter/receiver (not shown) and arespective antenna 114(1)-114(N) operably connected to the RFtransmitter/receiver to wirelessly distribute the communicationsservices to client devices 116 within the respective remote coverageareas 100(1)-100(N). The remote units 104(1)-104(N) are also configuredto receive uplink communications signals 110U from the client devices116 in the respective remote coverage areas 100(1)-100(N) to bedistributed to the signal source 108. The size of each of the remotecoverage areas 100(1)-100(N) is determined by amount of RF powertransmitted by the respective remote units 104(1)-104(N), receiversensitivity, antenna gain, and RF environment, as well as by RFtransmitter/receiver sensitivity of the client devices 116. The clientdevices 116 usually have a fixed maximum RF receiver sensitivity, sothat the above-mentioned properties of the remote units 104(1)-104(N)mainly determine the size of the respective remote coverage areas100(1)-100(N).

With reference to FIG. 1, the HEE 106 includes electronic processingdevices, for example field-programmable gate array (FPGA), digitalsignal processor (DSP), and/or central processing unit (CPU), forprocessing the downlink communications signals 110D and the uplinkcommunications signals 110U. Likewise, each of the remote units104(1)-104(N) also employs electronic processing devices for processingthe downlink communications signals 110D and the uplink communicationssignals 110U. Further, the communications medium 112 is only able tocarry the downlink communications signals 110D and the uplinkcommunications signals 110U up to a maximum bandwidth. Collectively, theprocessing capabilities of the electronic processing devices in the HEE106, the processing capabilities of the electronic processing devices inthe remote units 104(1)-104(N), and the maximum bandwidth of thecommunications medium 112 provide the system resources available in theWDS 102. It may be desirable to utilize the system resources in the WDS102 to improve overall performance of the WDS 102.

No admission is made that any reference cited herein constitutes priorart. Applicant expressly reserves the right to challenge the accuracyand pertinency of any cited documents.

SUMMARY

Embodiments of the disclosure relate to allocating digital channelsassociated with communications signals into assigned spectrum chunks ina wireless distribution system (WDS) based on determined utilization ofprocessing resources. A spectrum chunk refers to in-phase/quadrature(I/Q) samples represent signals within a certain frequency range, whichis defined by a starting frequency and an ending frequency, configuredto include one or more channels, such as the discrete channels. In oneembodiment, the WDS includes a central unit configured to communicatedownlink and uplink communications signals with a plurality of remoteunits over a plurality of downlink and uplink communication links. Thecentral unit and the remote units each include processing circuitryhaving predefined total processing circuitry resources. In anon-limiting example, the predefined total processing circuitryresources refer to collective signal processing capabilities (e.g.,read/write, encoding/decoding, modulation/de-modulation, filtering,up/down conversion, etc.) of the processing circuitry. The downlink anduplink communication links each have predefined link capacity. Thesystem resource made available in the WDS includes the predefined totalprocessing circuitry resources of the central unit and the remote units,as well as the predefined link capacity of the downlink and uplinkcommunication links. In one aspect, discrete downlink channelsassociated with the downlink communications signals are grouped intodownlink spectrum chunks at the central unit when the processingcircuitry at the central unit is underutilized, thus reducing processingcircuitry resource utilization at the remote units. In another aspect,discrete uplink channels associated with the uplink communicationssignals are grouped into uplink spectrum chunks at the remote units whenthe processing circuitries at the remote units are underutilized, thusreducing processing circuitry resource utilization at the central unit.By grouping discrete downlink channels into downlink spectrum chunks atthe central unit and/or grouping uplink discrete channels into uplinkspectrum chunks at the remote units, it is possible to optimize systemresource utilization in the WDS, thus providing enhanced overallperformance (e.g., designing the WDS for a given throughput with lessprocessing resources, delivering more throughput for a given amount ofprocessing resources, etc.).

One embodiment of the disclosure relates to a resource configurationsystem configured to allocate processing resources for communicating aplurality of incoming digital signals in a WDS. The resourceconfiguration system comprises processing circuitry having a predefinedtotal processing circuitry resource for processing the plurality ofincoming digital signals. The plurality of incoming digital signalscomprises a plurality of discrete channels. The processing circuitry isconfigured to receive the plurality of incoming digital signals. Theprocessing circuitry is also configured to allocate each of theplurality of discrete channels to a spectrum chunk based on a spectrumchunk map. The spectrum chunk map comprises one or more spectrum chunks.Each of the one or more spectrum chunks is assigned with at least onediscrete channel among the plurality of discrete channels and allocateda processing circuitry resource that is less than or equal to thepredefined total processing circuitry resource. The processing circuitryis also configured to process each of the one or more spectrum chunksbased on the processing circuitry resource allocated to the spectrumchunk. The resource configuration system also comprises a distributioncircuit. The distribution circuit is configured to generate a pluralityof outgoing digital signals each comprising at least one spectrum chunkamong the one or more spectrum chunks.

Another embodiment of the disclosure relates to a method for allocatingprocessing circuitry resource for communicating a plurality of incomingdigital signals in a WDS. The method comprises determining a predefinedtotal processing circuitry resource for processing the plurality ofincoming digital signals. The plurality of incoming digital signalscomprises a plurality of discrete channels. The method also comprisesreceiving the plurality of incoming digital signals. The method alsocomprises allocating each of the plurality of discrete channels to aspectrum chunk based on a spectrum chunk map. The spectrum chunk mapcomprises one or more spectrum chunks. Each of the one or more spectrumchunks is assigned with at least one discrete channel among theplurality of discrete channels and allocated a processing circuitryresource that is less than or equal to the predefined total processingcircuitry resource. The method also comprises processing each of the oneor more spectrum chunks based on the processing circuitry resourceallocated to the spectrum chunk. The method also comprises generating aplurality of outgoing digital signals each comprising at least onespectrum chunk among the one or more spectrum chunks.

Another embodiment of the disclosure relates to a WDS. The WDS comprisesa central unit comprising a central unit resource configuration system.The central unit resource configuration system comprises processingcircuitry having a predefined total central unit processing circuitryresource for processing a plurality of downlink digital signals thatcomprises a plurality of discrete downlink channels. The WDS alsocomprises a configuration controller. The configuration controller isconfigured to determine a downlink spectrum chunk map for the centralunit resource configuration system. The downlink spectrum chunk mapcomprises one or more downlink spectrum chunks determined based on apredefined spectrum-chunking algorithm. The configuration controller isalso configured to assign a discrete downlink channel among theplurality of discrete downlink channels to each of the one or moredownlink spectrum chunks. The configuration controller is alsoconfigured to allocate a central unit processing circuitry resource thatis less than or equal to the predefined total central unit processingcircuitry resource of the processing circuitry in the central unitresource configuration system to each of the one or more downlinkspectrum chunks based on a predefined resource allocation policy. Thecentral unit resource configuration system is configured to receive theplurality of downlink digital signals. The central unit resourceconfiguration system is also configured to allocate each of theplurality of discrete downlink channels to an assigned downlink spectrumchunk based on the downlink spectrum chunk map. The central unitresource configuration system is also configured to process each of theone or more downlink spectrum chunks based on the central unitprocessing circuitry resource allocated to the downlink spectrum chunk.The central unit resource configuration system is also configured togenerate a plurality of downlink digital communications signals eachcomprising at least one downlink spectrum chunk among the one or moredownlink spectrum chunks. The WDS also comprises a plurality of remoteunits. The plurality of remote units is configured to receive theplurality of downlink digital communications signals from the centralunit over a plurality of downlink communication links, respectively. Theplurality of remote units is also configured to convert the plurality ofdownlink digital communications signals into a plurality of downlinkradio frequency (RF) communications signals for distribution to clientdevices.

Additional features and advantages will be set forth in the detaileddescription which follows and, in part, will be readily apparent tothose skilled in the art from the description or recognized bypracticing the embodiments as described in the written description andclaims hereof, as well as the appended drawings.

It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description andthe following detailed description are merely exemplary and are intendedto provide an overview or framework to understand the nature andcharacter of the claims.

The accompanying drawings are included to provide a furtherunderstanding of the disclosure. The drawings illustrate one or moreembodiment(s), and together with the description serve to explainprinciples and operation of the various embodiments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates distribution of communications services to remotecoverage areas of a wireless distribution system (WDS);

FIG. 2A is a schematic diagram of an exemplary conventional channelgrouping scheme for grouping a plurality of discrete channels in awide-bandwidth spectrum chunk;

FIG. 2B is a schematic diagram of an exemplary channel grouping schemefor grouping the discrete channels of FIG. 2A into one or more spectrumchunks;

FIG. 3A is a schematic diagram of an exemplary WDS in which a sourceentity is configured to support the discrete channels of FIG. 2Aaccording to an individual channel-based scheme;

FIG. 3B is a schematic diagram of an exemplary WDS in which a sourceentity is configured to support the discrete channels of FIG. 2Aaccording to the channel grouping scheme of FIG. 2B;

FIG. 3C is a schematic diagram of an exemplary WDS in which a sourceentity is configured to communicate a plurality of analog streams in thediscrete channels of FIG. 2A according to the individual channel-basedscheme of FIG. 3A;

FIG. 3D is a schematic diagram of an exemplary WDS in which a sourceentity is configured to communicate the analog streams of FIG. 3C in thediscrete channels of FIG. 2A according to the channel grouping scheme ofFIG. 2B;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of an exemplary WDS that includes acentral unit resource configuration system and a plurality of remoteunit resource configuration systems for allocating digital channelsassociated with communications signals into spectrum chunks in the WDSbased on a predefined spectrum-chunking algorithm and a predefinedresource allocation policy;

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of an exemplary resource configurationsystem that can be configured to function as the central unit resourceconfiguration system and/or the remote unit resource configurationsystems in the WDS of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of an exemplary process of the resourceconfiguration system of FIG. 5 for allocating processing resources;

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of an exemplary spectrum-chunking enginethat is employed by an exemplary configuration controller in the WDS ofFIG. 4 to implement the predefined spectrum-chunking algorithm forallocating the digital channels associated with the communicationssignals into the spectrum chunks of FIG. 4;

FIG. 8 is a table providing an exemplary illustration of the predefinedresource allocation policy of FIG. 4 that can be used to configure thecentral unit resource configuration system and the remote unit resourceconfiguration systems in the WDS in FIG. 4 for optimizing systemresources utilization;

FIG. 9A is a schematic diagram providing an exemplary illustration of aremote unit configured to process a downlink digital communicationssignal received from a central unit;

FIG. 9B is a schematic diagram of an exemplary analog in-phase(I)/quadrature (Q) (I/Q) de-modulator that can be provided in the remoteunit of FIG. 9A;

FIG. 10A is a schematic diagram providing an exemplary illustration of aremote unit configured to generate an uplink digital communicationssignal based on an uplink radio frequency (RF) communications signal;

FIG. 10B is a schematic diagram of an exemplary analog I/Q modulatorthat can be provided in the remote units of FIG. 10A;

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram of an exemplary optical fiber-based WDSthat includes the central unit resource configuration system and theremote unit resource configuration systems of FIG. 4 for allocating thedigital channels associated with the communications signals into thespectrum chunks of FIG. 4 based on a predefined spectrum-chunkingalgorithm and a predefined resource allocation policy; and

FIG. 12 is a partial schematic cut-away diagram of an exemplary buildinginfrastructure in which a WDS(s), including the WDSs of FIGS. 4 and 11,is configured to allocate digital channels associated withcommunications signals into spectrum chunks.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments of the disclosure relate to allocating digital channelsassociated with communications signals into assigned spectrum chunks ina wireless distribution system (WDS) based on determined utilization ofprocessing resources. A spectrum chunk refers to in-phase/quadrature(I/Q) samples represent signals within a certain frequency range, whichis defined by a starting frequency and an ending frequency, configuredto include one or more channels, such as the discrete channels. In oneembodiment, the WDS includes a central unit configured to communicatedownlink and uplink communications signals with a plurality of remoteunits over a plurality of downlink and uplink communication links. Thecentral unit and the remote units each include processing circuitryhaving predefined total processing circuitry resources. In anon-limiting example, the predefined total processing circuitryresources refer to collective signal processing capabilities (e.g.,read/write, encoding/decoding, modulation/de-modulation, filtering,up/down conversion, etc.) of the processing circuitry. The downlink anduplink communication links each have predefined link capacity. Thesystem resource made available in the WDS includes the predefined totalprocessing circuitry resources of the central unit and the remote units,as well as the predefined link capacity of the downlink and uplinkcommunication links. In one aspect, discrete downlink channelsassociated with the downlink communications signals are grouped intodownlink spectrum chunks at the central unit when the processingcircuitry at the central unit is underutilized, thus reducing processingcircuitry resource utilization at the remote units. In another aspect,discrete uplink channels associated with the uplink communicationssignals are grouped into uplink spectrum chunks at the remote units whenthe processing circuitries at the remote units are underutilized, thusreducing processing circuitry resource utilization at the central unit.By grouping discrete downlink channels into downlink spectrum chunks atthe central unit and/or grouping uplink discrete channels into uplinkspectrum chunks at the remote units, it is possible to optimize systemresource utilization in the WDS, thus providing enhanced overallperformance (e.g., designing the WDS for a given throughput with lessprocessing resources, delivering more throughput for a given amount ofprocessing resources, etc.).

Before discussing examples of allocating digital channels associatedwith communications signals into assigned spectrum chunks in a WDS basedon determined utilization of processing resources starting at FIG. 4, adefinition of common terminologies used throughout the presentapplication is first provided. An overview of various methods forcommunicating a plurality of channels between a source entity and adestination entity and corresponding system resource utilizationimplications are then discussed with references to FIGS. 2A-2B and3A-3D. The discussion of specific exemplary aspects of allocatingcommunications signals into assigned spectrum chunks in a WDS based ondetermined utilization of processing resources starts with reference toFIG. 4.

A spectrum chunk in the context of the present application refers toin-phase (I) and quadrature (Q) (IQ) samples within a certain frequencyrange that is defined by a starting frequency and an ending frequencyand can be configured to include one or more discrete channels. It shallbe appreciated that the one or more discrete channels included in thespectrum chunk can be adjacent or non-adjacent. In a non-limitingexample, the spectrum chunk can be identical to a spectrum of a discretechannel, which originate from a baseband unit (BBU) or sampled/filteredfrom an analog radio frequency (RF) signal(s).

A digital stream of a spectrum chunk in the context of the presentapplication includes the IQ samples of the spectrum chunk (located at abaseband). Since a spectrum chunk can include multiple discretechannels, the digital stream of a spectrum chunk may include the IQsamples associated with the multiple discrete channels included in thespectrum chunk.

FIG. 2A is a schematic diagram of an exemplary conventional channelgrouping scheme 200 for supporting a plurality of discrete channels202(1)-202(7) in a wide-bandwidth spectrum chunk 204. The discretechannels 202(1)-202(7) are communicated across a communication link 207in a communications system, such as a WDS. The discrete channels202(1)-202(7) and the digital streams 206(1)-206(7) as illustratedherein are examples for the convenience of reference and shall not beinterpreted as limiting. In a non-limiting example, the discretechannels 202(1), 202(2), and 202(7) each have a five (5) megahertz (MHz)bandwidth. The discrete channels 202(4)-202(6) each have a 1250kilohertz (KHz) or 1.25 MHz bandwidth. The discrete channel 202(3) has aten (10) MHz bandwidth. The discrete channel 202(3) is separated fromthe discrete channel 202(4) by a first unused spectrum G₁, which may be10 MHz in this example and provides spectrum separation between thediscrete channel 202(3) and the discrete channel 202(4). The discretechannel 202(6) is separated from the discrete channel 202(7) by a secondunused spectrum G₂, which may be 5 MHz in this example. In this regard,to communicate the discrete channels 202(1)-202(7) in the wide-bandwidthspectrum chunk 204, bandwidth W₁ of the wide-bandwidth spectrum chunk204 needs to be greater than or equal to the total bandwidth of thediscrete channels 202(1)-202(7), the first unused spectrum G₁, and thesecond unused spectrum G₂. According to the above example, the bandwidthW₁ of the wide-bandwidth spectrum chunk 204 needs to be at least 43.75MHz to support the discrete channels 202(1)-202(7) in the wide-bandwidthspectrum chunk 204. As a result, the conventional channel groupingscheme 200 needs to support a higher aggregated data rate, thus leadingto increased data throughput.

However, the conventional channel grouping scheme 200 has two potentialconsequences. First, the digital streams 206(1)-206(7) associated withthe discrete channels 202(1)-202(7) need to be processed (e.g., sampled,digitized, encoded, channelized, combined, etc.) before beingcommunicated in the wide-bandwidth spectrum chunk 204. As a result, theconventional channel grouping scheme 200 may require more signalprocessing, thus leading to a higher demand for processing resources(e.g., field-programmable gate array (FPGA), digital signal processor(DSP), central processing unit (CPU), etc.). Second, the communicationlink 207 configured to support the wide-bandwidth spectrum chunk 204needs to have a communication link bandwidth greater than or equal tothe bandwidth W₁ of the wide-bandwidth spectrum chunk 204. This mayprove challenging in some WDS deployments.

To reduce the bandwidth requirement on the communication link 207 andthe demand for processing resources, it is possible to communicate thedigital streams 206(1)-206(7) in the discrete channels 202(1)-202(7)individually (hereinafter referred to as an “individual channel-basedscheme”). In this regard, according to the above non-limiting example,the communication link 207 needs to support an aggregated bandwidthhigher than the 10 MHz bandwidth, which includes a sum of all bandwidths(excluding the first unused spectrum G₁ and the second unused spectrumG₂) among the discrete channels 202(1)-202(7), to communicate each ofthe digital streams 206(1)-206(7). Further, since the digital streams206(1)-206(7) are communicated individually, the individualchannel-based scheme requires less signal processing at a central unit,thus reducing the demand for processing resources (e.g., FPGA, DSP, CPU,etc.) at the central unit at the expense of increased resourcerequirement at remote units. However, since the communication link 207has a reduced bandwidth, the aggregated data rate will be lower than inthe conventional channel grouping scheme 200.

The conventional channel grouping scheme 200 and the individualchannel-based scheme, as discussed above, each have advantages anddisadvantages. It may be desirable to achieve a balance between easingthe bandwidth requirement for the communication link 207 and reducingthe demand for processing resources when communicating digital streams,such as the exemplary digital streams 206(1)-206(7) in FIG. 2A. In thisregard, FIG. 2B is a schematic diagram of an exemplary channel groupingscheme 208 for grouping the discrete channels 202(1)-202(7) of FIG. 2Ain one or more spectrum chunks 210(1)-210(3). Common elements betweenFIGS. 2A and 2B are shown therein with common element numbers and willnot be re-described herein.

With reference to FIG. 2B, the spectrum chunk 210(1) includes thediscrete channels 202(1)-202(3) and has a first spectrum chunk bandwidth212(1) that is greater than or equal to a total bandwidth of thediscrete channels 202(1)-202(3), which is twenty (20) MHz, for example.In a non-limiting example, the spectrum chunk 210(1) can include unusedspectrum between the discrete channels 202(1)-202(3). The spectrum chunk210(1) is configured to communicate the digital streams 206(1)-206(3).The spectrum chunk 210(2) includes the discrete channels 202(4)-202(6)and has a second spectrum chunk bandwidth 212(2) that is greater than orequal to a total bandwidth of the discrete channels 202(4)-202(6), whichis 3.75 MHz, for example. In a non-limiting example, the spectrum chunk210(2) can include unused spectrum between the discrete channels202(4)-202(6). The spectrum chunk 210(2) is configured to communicatethe digital streams 206(4)-206(6). The spectrum chunk 210(3) includesthe discrete channel 202(7) and has a third spectrum chunk bandwidth212(3) that is greater than or equal to a total bandwidth of thediscrete channel 202(7), which is 5 MHz, for example. The spectrum chunk210(3) is configured to communicate the digital stream 206(7).

To support the spectrum chunks 210(1)-210(3) over the communication link207 in the example of FIG. 2A, the communication link 207 need onlysupport a bandwidth that is proportional to the aggregated bandwidth ofthe first spectrum chunk bandwidth 212(1), the second spectrum chunkbandwidth 212(2), and the third spectrum chunk bandwidth 212(3). In thisregard, the bandwidth requirement for the communication link 207 in thechannel grouping scheme 208 (≥20 MHz) is less than the bandwidthrequirement under the conventional channel grouping scheme 200 (43.75MHz according to the example in FIG. 2A), but more than the bandwidthrequirement under the individual channel-based scheme (the aggregatedbandwidth of more than 10 MHz according to the example in FIG. 2A).Accordingly, the channel grouping scheme 208 can support a higheraggregated data rate than the individual channel-based scheme, but alower aggregated data rate than the conventional channel grouping scheme200. The demand for processing resources at the central unit under thechannel grouping scheme 208 will be lower than the conventional channelgrouping scheme 200, but higher than the individual channel-basedscheme. In contrast, the demand for processing resources at the remoteunits under the channel grouping scheme 208 will be higher than theconventional channel grouping scheme 200, but lower than the individualchannel-based scheme.

To further illustrate implications of the conventional channel groupingscheme 200, the individual channel-based scheme, and the channelgrouping scheme 208 on system resource utilization in the context of aWDS, FIGS. 3A-3D are discussed next. Common elements between FIGS. 2A,2B, and 3A-3D are shown therein with common element numbers and will notbe re-described herein.

In this regard, FIG. 3A is a schematic diagram of an exemplary WDS 300in which a source entity 302 is configured to support the discretechannels 202(1)-202(7) of FIG. 2A according to the individualchannel-based scheme. With reference to FIG. 3A, the source entity 302is configured communicate the digital streams 206(1)-206(7) to adestination entity 304 over a communication link 306. In a firstnon-limiting example, the source entity 302 is a central unit, and thedestination entity 304 is a remote unit in the WDS 300. Accordingly, thecommunication link 306 is a downlink communication link. Likewise, thediscrete channels 202(1)-202(7) are downlink channels, and the digitalstreams 206(1)-206(7) are downlink digital streams. In a secondnon-limiting example, the source entity 302 is a remote unit, and thedestination entity 304 is a central unit in the WDS 300. Accordingly,the communication link 306 is an uplink communication link. Likewise,the discrete channels 202(1)-202(7) are uplink channels, and the digitalstreams 206(1)-206(7) are uplink digital streams.

The source entity 302 includes source entity processing resources, whichmay be implemented by elements such as FPGA, DSP, CPU, etc., forprocessing the digital streams 206(1)-206(7) associated with thediscrete channels 202(1)-202(7). The communication link 306 has acommunication link bandwidth for supporting the discrete channels202(1)-202(7). The destination entity 304 includes destination entityprocessing resources, which may be implemented by elements such as FPGA,DSP, CPU, etc., for processing the digital streams 206(1)-206(7), whichare in-phase (I) and quadrature (Q) (I/Q) samples representing thediscrete channels 202(1)-202(7). Collectively, the source entityprocessing resources, the communication link bandwidth, and thedestination entity processing resources are hereinafter referred to assystem resources of the WDS 300.

With continuing reference to FIG. 3A, in a non-limiting example, thesource entity 302 receives the digital streams 206(1)-206(7)representing the discrete channels 202(1)-202(7) from digital signalsource(s) (not shown), such as a BBU, according to common public radiointerface (CPRI) protocol or other protocols. Under the individualchannel-based scheme, the source entity 302 is configured to communicatethe digital streams 206(1)-206(7) individually to the destination entity304 over the communication link 306. In a non-limiting example, thecommunication link 306 can be a time-division multiplexing (TDM) link.Accordingly, the digital streams 206(1)-206(7) can be referred to as TDMdigital streams 206(1)-206(7). Since the digital streams 206(1)-206(7)are communicated individually, the source entity 302 performs lesssignal processing on the digital streams 206(1)-206(7). As a result,demand for processing resources is reduced at the source entity 302, asindicated by downward arrow 308. Further, according to previousdiscussions in FIG. 2A, the communication link bandwidth of thecommunication link 306 is also reduced, as indicated by downward arrow310. In contrast to the source entity 302, the destination entity 304 isconfigured to operate according to the channel grouping scheme 208 ofFIG. 2B. As such, the destination entity 304 processes the digitalstreams 206(1)-206(7) received over the communication link 306 togenerate spectrum chunks 210(1)′-210(3)′. According to previousdiscussions in FIG. 2B, the destination entity 304 needs to perform moresignal processing than in the case where the discrete channels202(1)-202(7) are sent to the destination entity 304 already grouped inthe spectrum chunks 210(1)-210(3). As such, demand for processingresources is increased at the destination entity 304, as indicated byupward arrow 312.

FIG. 3B is a schematic diagram of an exemplary WDS 300(1) in which asource entity 302(1) is configured to support the discrete channels202(1)-202(7) according to the channel grouping scheme 208 of FIG. 2B.With reference to FIG. 3B, the source entity 302(1) is configuredcommunicate the digital streams 206(1)-206(7) to a destination entity304(1) over a communication link 306(1). In a first non-limitingexample, the source entity 302(1) is a central unit, and the destinationentity 304(1) is a remote unit in the WDS 300(1). Accordingly, thecommunication link 306(1) is a downlink communication link. Likewise,the discrete channels 202(1)-202(7) are downlink channels, and thedigital streams 206(1)-206(7) are downlink digital streams. In a secondnon-limiting example, the source entity 302(1) is a remote unit, and thedestination entity 304(1) is a central unit in the WDS 300(1).Accordingly, the communication link 306(1) is an uplink communicationlink. Likewise, the discrete channels 202(1)-202(7) are uplink channels,and the digital streams 206(1)-206(7) are uplink digital streams.

The source entity 302(1) includes source entity processing resources forprocessing the digital streams 206(1)-206(7) associated with thediscrete channels 202(1)-202(7). The communication link 306(1) has acommunication link bandwidth for supporting the discrete channels202(1)-202(7). The destination entity 304(1) includes destination entityprocessing resources for processing the digital streams 206(1)-206(7)received in the discrete channels 202(1)-202(7). Collectively, thesource entity processing resources, the communication link bandwidth,and the destination entity processing resources are hereinafter referredto as system resources of the WDS 300(1).

With continuing reference to FIG. 3B, under the channel grouping scheme208, the source entity 302(1) is configured to generate the spectrumchunks 210(1)-210(3) for communicating the digital streams 206(1)-206(7)to the destination entity 304(1) over the communication link 306(1).According to previous discussions in FIG. 2B, the source entity 302(1)needs to group the discrete channels 202(1)-202(7) into the spectrumchunks 210(1)-210(3). As such, demand for processing resources isincreased at the source entity 302(1), as indicated by upward arrow 314.Further according to previous discussions in FIG. 2B, the communicationlink bandwidth of the communication link 306(1) is also increased, asindicated by upward arrow 316. In contrast, the destination entity304(1) may need to perform less signal processing on the digital streams206(1)-206(7) in the spectrum chunks 210(1)-210(3) compared to the casewhere the discrete channels 202(1)-202(7) are sent to the destinationentity 304 of FIG. 3A as the discrete channels 202(1)-202(7). As aresult, demand for processing resources is decreased at the destinationentity 304(1), as indicated by downward arrow 318.

As previously discussed in FIG. 3A, the source entity 302 receives thedigital streams 206(1)-206(7) in the discrete channels 202(1)-202(7)from the digital signal source(s). In a non-limiting example, analogstreams from analog signal source(s) may also be received. In thisregard, FIG. 3C is a schematic diagram of an exemplary WDS 300(2) inwhich a source entity 302(2) is configured to communicate a plurality ofanalog streams 320(1)-320(7) in the discrete channels 202(1)-202(7) ofFIG. 2A according to the individual channel-based scheme.

With reference to FIG. 3C, the source entity 302(2) receives the analogstreams 320(1)-320(7) from the analog signal source(s), such as a basetransceiver station (BTS). The source entity 302(2) is configured tofirst convert the analog streams 320(1)-320(7) into the digital streams206(1)-206(7), respectively. The source entity 302(2) then communicatesthe digital streams 206(1)-206(7) to a destination entity 304(2) over acommunication link 306(2). In a first non-limiting example, the sourceentity 302(2) is a central unit, and the destination entity 304(2) is aremote unit in the WDS 300(2). Accordingly, the communication link306(2) is a downlink communication link. Likewise, the discrete channels202(1)-202(7) are downlink channels, and the digital streams206(1)-206(7) are downlink digital streams. In a second non-limitingexample, the source entity 302(2) is a remote unit, and the destinationentity 304(2) is a central unit in the WDS 300(2). Accordingly, thecommunication link 306(2) is an uplink communication link. Likewise, thediscrete channels 202(1)-202(7) are uplink channels, and the digitalstreams 206(1)-206(7) are uplink digital streams.

The source entity 302(2) includes source entity processing resources(e.g., FPGA, DSP, CPU, etc.) for processing the analog streams320(1)-320(7) and the digital streams 206(1)-206(7). The communicationlink 306(2) has a communication link bandwidth for supporting thediscrete channels 202(1)-202(7). The destination entity 304(2) includesdestination entity processing resources (e.g., FPGA, DSP, CPU, etc.) forprocessing the digital streams 206(1)-206(7) received in the discretechannels 202(1)-202(7). Collectively, the source entity processingresources, the communication link bandwidth, and the destination entityprocessing resources are hereinafter referred to as system resources ofthe WDS 300(2).

With continuing reference to FIG. 3C, under the individual channel-basedscheme, the source entity 302(2) is configured to communicate thedigital streams 206(1)-206(7) individually to the destination entity304(2) over the communication link 306(2). The source entity 302(2)individually converts the analog streams 320(1)-320(7) into the digitalstreams 206(1)-206(7). Since the source entity 302(2) needs to performseven analog stream-to-digital stream conversions, demand for processingresources is increased at the source entity 302(2), as indicated byupward arrow 322. According to previous discussions in FIG. 2A, thecommunication link bandwidth of the communication link 306(2) isreduced, as indicated by downward arrow 324. The destination entity304(2) is configured to operate according to the channel grouping scheme208 of FIG. 2B. As such, the destination entity 304(2) processes thedigital streams 206(1)-206(7) received over the communication link306(2) to generate the spectrum chunks 210(1)-210(3). According toprevious discussions in FIG. 2B, the destination entity 304(2) performsmore signal processing than the source entity 302(2) performs. As such,demand for processing resources is increased at the destination entity304(2), as indicated by upward arrow 326.

FIG. 3D is a schematic diagram of an exemplary WDS 300(3) in which asource entity 302(3) is configured to communicate the analog streams320(1)-320(7) of FIG. 3C in the discrete channels 202(1)-202(7) of FIG.2A according to the channel grouping scheme 208 of FIG. 2B. Withreference to FIG. 3D, the source entity 302(3) is configured to firstconvert the analog streams 320(1)-320(7) into the digital streams206(1)-206(7), respectively. The source entity 302(3) then communicatesthe digital streams 206(1)-206(7) to a destination entity 304(3) over acommunication link 306(3). In a first non-limiting example, the sourceentity 302(3) is a central unit, and the destination entity 304(3) is aremote unit in the WDS 300(3). Accordingly, the communication link306(3) is a downlink communication link. Likewise, the discrete channels202(1)-202(7) are downlink channels, and the digital streams206(1)-206(7) are downlink digital streams. In a second non-limitingexample, the source entity 302(3) is a remote unit, and the destinationentity 304(3) is a central unit in the WDS 300(3). Accordingly, thecommunication link 306(3) is an uplink communication link. Likewise, thediscrete channels 202(1)-202(7) are uplink channels, and the digitalstreams 206(1)-206(7) are uplink digital streams.

The source entity 302(3) includes source entity processing resources forprocessing the analog streams 320(1)-320(7) and the digital streams206(1)-206(7). The destination entity 304(3) includes destination entityprocessing resources for processing the digital streams 206(1)-206(7).Collectively, the source entity processing resources, the communicationlink bandwidth, and the destination entity processing resources arehereinafter referred to as system resources of the WDS 300(3).

With continuing reference to FIG. 3D, under the channel grouping scheme208, the source entity 302(3) is configured to generate the spectrumchunks 210(1)-210(3) for communicating the digital streams 206(1)-206(7)to the destination entity 304(3) over the communication link 306(3). Thesource entity 302(3) groups the discrete channels 202(1)-202(7) into thespectrum chunks 210(1)-210(3). The source entity 302(3) then assigns theanalog streams 320(1)-320(3), the analog streams 320(4)-320(6), and theanalog stream 320(7) to the spectrum chunks 210(1)-210(3), respectively.Subsequently, the source entity 302(3) converts the analog streams320(1)-320(3) into the digital streams 206(1)-206(3), converts theanalog streams 320(4)-320(6) into the digital streams 206(4)-206(6), andconverts the analog stream 320(7) into the digital stream 206(7). Inthis regard, the source entity 302(3) only performs three analogstream-to-digital stream conversions, as opposed to the seven analogstream-to-digital stream conversions performed by the source entity302(2) under the individual channel-based scheme. As such, demand forprocessing resources is decreased at the source entity 302(3), asindicated by downward arrow 328. Further according to previousdiscussions in FIG. 2B, the communication link bandwidth of thecommunication link 306(3) is increased, as indicated by upward arrow330. The destination entity 304(3) may not perform any further signalprocessing on the digital streams 206(1)-206(7) in the spectrum chunks210(1)-210(3). As a result, demand for processing resources is decreasedat the destination entity 304(3), as indicated by downward arrow 332.

As previously discussed in FIG. 3A, the source entity 302 and thedestination entity 304 are configured to support the discrete channels202(1)-202(7) according to the individual channel-based scheme and thechannel grouping scheme 208, respectively. As a result, the demand forprocessing resources (e.g., FPGA, DSP, CPU, etc.) decreases at thesource entity 302 and increases at the destination entity 304.Concurrently, the demand for communication link bandwidth of thecommunication link 306 also decreases.

In contrast, as discussed in FIG. 3B, both the source entity 302(1) andthe destination entity 304(1) are configured to support the channelgrouping scheme 208. As a result, the demand for processing resourcesincreases at the source entity 302(1) and decreases at the destinationentity 304(1). Concurrently, the demand for communication link bandwidthof the communication link 306(1) increases.

As such, it may be desired to determine whether to implement the channelgrouping scheme 208 at the source entity 302 or the destination entity304 based on the processing resources available at the source entity302, the processing resources available at the destination entity 304,and the communication link bandwidth of the communication link 306. Inthis regard, FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of an exemplary WDS 400including a central unit resource configuration system 402 and aplurality of remote unit resource configuration systems 404(1)-404(N)for allocating digital channels associated with communications signalsinto assigned spectrum chunks in the WDS 400 based on a predefinedspectrum-chunking algorithm and a predefined resource allocation policy.The WDS 400 includes a central unit 406 and a plurality of remote units408(1)-408(N). As is further discussed below, the WDS 400 is configuredto allocate the digital channels into the assigned spectrum chunks atthe central unit 406 and/or at the remote units 408(1)-408(N) tooptimize system resource utilization in the WDS 400, thus providingenhanced overall performance (e.g., designing the WDS 400 for a giventhroughput with less processing resources, delivering more throughputfor a given amount of processing resources, etc.).

With reference to FIG. 4, the WDS 400 may be a DAS with the remote units408(1)-408(N) provided as remote antenna units, as in this example. In adownlink path 410 in the WDS 400, the central unit 406 is configured tocommunicate a plurality of downlink digital communications signals412(1)-412(N) to the remote units 408(1)-408(N) over a plurality ofdownlink communication links 414(1)-414(N), respectively. The remoteunits 408(1)-408(N) convert the downlink digital communications signals412(1)-412(N) into a plurality of downlink RF communications signals416(1)-416(N) and distribute the downlink RF communications signals416(1)-416(N) to client devices (not shown) in the WDS 400. In anon-limiting example, the remote units 408(1)-408(N) include one or morefrontend circuitries 417(1)-417(N). In a non-limiting example, thefrontend circuitries 417(1)-417(N) include analog-to-digital converter(ADC)/digital-to-analog converter (DAC) (ADC/DAC) circuits forconverting the downlink digital communications signals 412(1)-412(N)into the downlink RF communications signals 416(1)-416(N). In anothernon-limiting example, the ADC/DAC circuits convert the downlink digitalcommunications signals 412(1)-412(N) into respective intermediatefrequency (IF) signals to be up-converted into the downlink RFcommunications signals 416(1)-416(N).

In an uplink path 418 of the WDS 400, the remote units 408(1)-408(N) areconfigured to receive a plurality of uplink RF communications signals420(1)-420(N) from the client devices in the WDS 400. The remote units408(1)-408(N) convert the uplink RF communications signals 420(1)-420(N)into a plurality of uplink digital communications signals 422(1)-422(N)and communicate the uplink digital communications signals 422(1)-422(N)to the central unit 406 over a plurality of uplink communication links424(1)-424(N), respectively.

For the convenience of illustration and discussion, the remote unit408(1) is discussed hereinafter as a non-limiting example. It shall beappreciated that the configuration and operation principles discussedbased on the remote unit 408(1) are applicable to any of the remoteunits 408(1)-408(N).

With continuing reference to the WDS 400 in FIG. 4, the central unitresource configuration system 402 includes central unit processingcircuitry 426. The central unit processing circuitry 426 refers to allprocessing devices (not shown) in the central unit 406 for processingand communicating the downlink digital communications signals412(1)-412(N) and the uplink digital communications signals422(1)-422(N). In a non-limiting example, the central unit processingcircuitry 426 includes FPGA(s), DSP(s), and CPU(s). The collectiveprocessing capability of the central unit processing circuitry 426 toperform a determined amount of digital processing within a determinedtime frame is hereinafter referred to as a predefined total central unitprocessing circuitry resource.

The remote unit resource configuration systems 404(1)-404(N) include aplurality of remote unit processing circuitries 428(1)-428(N),respectively. In this regard, the remote unit 408(1) includes the remoteunit processing circuitry 428(1). The remote unit processing circuitry428(1) refers to all processing devices (not shown) in the remote unit408(1) for processing and communicating the downlink digitalcommunications signal 412(1) and the uplink digital communicationssignal 422(1). In a non-limiting example, the remote unit processingcircuitry 428(1) includes FPGA(s), DSP(s), and CPU(s). The collectiveprocessing capability of the remote unit processing circuitry 428(1) toperform a determined amount of digital processing within a determinedtime frame is hereinafter referred to as a predefined total remote unitprocessing circuitry resource.

The downlink communication link 414(1) has a downlink communication linkbandwidth, which may be represented by the maximum downlink data ratesupported by the downlink communication link 414(1). The uplinkcommunication link 424(1) has an uplink communication link bandwidth,which may be represented by the maximum uplink data rate supported bythe uplink communication link 424(1). Collectively, the predefined totalcentral unit processing circuitry resource, the predefined total remoteunit processing circuitry resource, the downlink communication linkbandwidth, and the uplink communication link bandwidth are hereinafterreferred to as system resources of the WDS 400.

In the downlink path 410, the central unit resource configuration system402 receives a plurality of downlink digital signals 430(1)-430(M). Eachof the downlink digital signals 430(1)-430(M) includes one or morediscrete downlink channels. As such, the downlink digital signals430(1)-430(M) correspond to a plurality of discrete downlink channels432(1)-432(K) conveyed by a plurality of downlink digital streams434(1)-434(K), respectively. It shall be appreciated that, since each ofthe downlink digital signals 430(1)-430(M) may include more than onedownlink channel, the discrete downlink channels 432(1)-432(K) mayoutnumber the downlink digital signals 430(1)-430(M) (K≥M). The discretedownlink channels 432(1)-432(K) are assigned to the remote units408(1)-408(N). Each of the remote units 408(1)-408(N) may be associatedwith one or more of the discrete downlink channels 432(1)-432(K) and,thus, one or more of the downlink digital streams 434(1)-434(K). In thisregard, the central unit resource configuration system 402 may processthe downlink digital streams 434(1)-434(K), which convey the discretedownlink channels 432(1)-432(K), and create spectrum chunks, eachincluding one or more of the discrete downlink channels 432(1)-432(K)for communication to the remote units 408(1)-408(N) in respectivedownlink digital streams.

According to previous discussions in FIG. 3B, the central unit 406 inthe WDS 400 in FIG. 4, which could correspond to the source entity302(1) of FIG. 3B in the downlink path 410, may be configured tocommunicate the downlink digital streams 434(1)-434(K) of the discretedownlink channels 432(1)-432(K) according to the channel grouping scheme208. To configure the central unit resource configuration system 402 tocommunicate the downlink digital streams 434(1)-434(K) according to thechannel grouping scheme 208, the WDS 400 further includes aconfiguration controller 436. The configuration controller 436 iscommunicatively coupled to the central unit 406 and the remote units408(1)-408(N). In a non-limiting example, the configuration controller436 configures the central unit resource configuration system 402 tocommunicate the downlink digital streams 434(1)-434(K) according to thechannel grouping scheme 208 when the configuration controller 436determines that the predefined total central unit processing circuitryresource of the central unit processing circuitry 426 is underutilized.Otherwise, the configuration controller 436 may configure the centralunit processing circuitry 426 to communicate the downlink digitalstreams 434(1)-434(K) according to the individual channel-based scheme.

The configuration controller 436 configures the central unit resourceconfiguration system 402 to perform the channel grouping scheme 208and/or the individual channel-based scheme according to a predefinedresource allocation policy. In a non-limiting example, the configurationcontroller 436 retrieves the predefined resource allocation policy froma resource allocation policy database 438, which is communicativelycoupled to the configuration controller 436.

With continuing reference to FIG. 4, in the uplink path 418, the remoteunit 408(1) receives the uplink RF communications signal 420(1). Thefrontend circuitry 417(1) converts the uplink RF communications signal420(1) into a plurality of uplink digital signals 439(1)-439(P). Each ofthe uplink digital signals 439(1)-439(P) includes one or more discreteuplink channels. As such, the uplink digital signals 439(1)-439(P)correspond to a plurality of discrete uplink channels 440(1)-440(K)conveyed in a plurality of uplink digital streams 442(1)-442(K),respectively. It shall be appreciated that, since each of the uplinkdigital signals 439(1)-439(P) may include more than one uplink channel,the discrete uplink channels 440(1)-440(K) may outnumber the uplinkdigital signals 439(1)-439(P) (K≥P).

According to previous discussions in FIG. 3B, the remote unit 408(1),which corresponds to the source entity 302(1) of FIG. 3B in the uplinkpath 418, may be configured to communicate the uplink digital streams442(1)-442(K) in the discrete uplink channels 440(1)-440(K) according tothe channel grouping scheme 208. The remote unit 408(1) iscommunicatively coupled to the configuration controller 436. Theconfiguration controller 436 configures the remote unit resourceconfiguration system 404(1) to communicate the uplink digital streams442(1)-442(K) according to the channel grouping scheme 208 when theconfiguration controller 436 determines that the predefined total remoteunit processing circuitry resource of the remote unit processingcircuitry 428(1) is underutilized. Otherwise, the configurationcontroller 436 may configure the remote unit processing circuitry 428(1)to communicate the uplink digital streams 442(1)-442(K) according to theindividual channel-based scheme.

The central unit resource configuration system 402 and the remote unitresource configuration system 404(1) can be configured based on a commonarchitecture. In this regard, FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of anexemplary resource configuration system 500 that can be provided in thecentral unit 406 of FIG. 4 as the central unit resource configurationsystem 402 and/or in the remote units 408(1)-408(N) as the remote unitresource configuration systems 404(1)-404(N). Common elements betweenFIGS. 4 and 5 are shown therein with common element numbers and will notbe re-described herein.

With reference to FIG. 5, the resource configuration system 500 includesprocessing circuitry 502. The processing circuitry 502 has a predefinedtotal processing circuitry resource. When the resource configurationsystem 500 is provided in the central unit 406 as the central unitresource configuration system 402, the predefined total processingcircuitry resource is equivalent to the predefined total central unitprocessing circuitry resource. Likewise, when the resource configurationsystem 500 is provided in the remote unit 408(1) as the remote unitresource configuration system 404(1), the predefined total processingcircuitry resource is equivalent to the predefined total remote unitprocessing circuitry resources.

The processing circuitry 502 in the resource configuration system 500 isconfigured to receive a plurality of incoming digital signals504(1)-504(J) and provide a plurality of outgoing digital signals506(1)-506(F). In a non-limiting example, the incoming digital signals504(1)-504(J) can each include one or more discrete channels, such asthe discrete channels 202(1)-202(7) of FIG. 3A, for example. When theresource configuration system 500 is provided in the central unit 406 asthe central unit resource configuration system 402, the incoming digitalsignals 504(1)-504(J) are equivalent to the downlink digital signals430(1)-430(M), and the outgoing digital signals 506(1)-506(F) areequivalent to the downlink digital communications signals 412(1)-412(N).When the resource configuration system 500 is provided in the remoteunit 408(1) as the remote unit resource configuration system 404(1), theincoming digital signals 504(1)-504(J) are equivalent to the uplinkdigital signals 439(1)-439(P), and the outgoing digital signals506(1)-506(F) are equivalent to the uplink digital communicationssignals 422(1)-422(N).

With continuing reference to FIG. 5, the incoming digital signals504(1)-504(J) include a plurality of discrete channels 508(1)-508(K),wherein the letter K may represent a different positive integer from theletter K in FIG. 4. The discrete channels 508(1)-508(K) are configuredto be communicated in a plurality of digital streams 510(1)-510(K),respectively. In a non-limiting example, the discrete channels508(1)-508(2) each have a 5 MHz bandwidth, the discrete channel 508(3)has a 1.25 MHz bandwidth, and the discrete channel 508(K) has a 10 MHzbandwidth. When the resource configuration system 500 is provided as thecentral unit resource configuration system 402 in the central unit 406,the discrete channels 508(1)-508(K) are equivalent to the discretedownlink channels 432(1)-432(K), and the digital streams 510(1)-510(K)are equivalent to the downlink digital streams 434(1)-434(K). Likewise,when the resource configuration system 500 is provided in the remoteunits 408(1), the discrete channels 508(1)-508(K) are equivalent to thediscrete uplink channels 440(1)-440(K), and the digital streams510(1)-510(K) are equivalent to the uplink digital streams442(1)-442(K).

The processing circuitry 502 includes a memory 512 configured to store aspectrum chunk map 514 in a storage media (not shown) for example. Thespectrum chunk map 514 includes one or more spectrum chunks516(1)-516(S). In a non-limiting example, the spectrum chunk map 514 isdetermined by an algorithm that defines the spectrum chunks516(1)-516(S) based on channel location, bandwidth and resourceavailability, and other factors. The configuration controller 436determines how the discrete channels 508(1)-508(K) are grouped into thespectrum chunks 516(1)-516(S) using the algorithm for defining thespectrum chunks 516(1)-516(S) in the spectrum chunk map 514. When theprocessing circuitry 502 is provided in the central unit resourceconfiguration system 402, the spectrum chunk map 514 is referred to as adownlink spectrum chunk map 514 and the spectrum chunks 516(1)-516(S)are referred to as one or more downlink spectrum chunks 516(1)-516(S).When the processing circuitry 502 is provided in the remote unitresource configuration system 404(1), the spectrum chunk map 514 isreferred to as an uplink spectrum chunk map 514 and the spectrum chunks516(1)-516(S) are referred to as one or more uplink spectrum chunks516(1)-516(S). Each of the spectrum chunks 516(1)-516(S) is assignedwith at least one discrete channel among the discrete channels508(1)-508(K) according to the spectrum chunk map 514. For example, thespectrum chunk map 514 assigns the discrete channels 508(1)-508(2) tothe spectrum chunk 516(1), and assigns the discrete channel 508(K) tothe spectrum chunk 516(S). Each of the spectrum chunks 516(1)-516(S) areallocated a processing circuitry resource that is less than or equal tothe predefined total processing circuitry resource of the processingcircuitry 502. In a non-limiting example, configuration settings of theprocessing circuitry resource (e.g., FPGA, DSP, CPU, etc.) forprocessing the spectrum chunks 516(1)-516(S) include digital upconversion, digital down-conversion, filtering, digital signalcombining, etc.

The processing circuitry 502 receives the incoming digital signals504(1)-504(J). In this regard, the incoming digital signals504(1)-504(J) may each include an in-phase (I) component (I-component)and a quadrature (Q) component (Q-component). Likewise, the outgoingdigital signals 506(1)-506(F) also may each include an I-component and aQ-component.

The processing circuitry 502 is configured to allocate each of thediscrete channels 508(1)-508(K) to the assigned spectrum chunk based onthe spectrum chunk map 514. For example, the spectrum chunk map 514assigns the discrete channels 508(1)-508(2) to the spectrum chunk516(1). Therefore, the processing circuitry 502 allocates the discretechannels 508(1)-508(2) to the spectrum chunk 516(1) based on thespectrum chunk map 514. The processing circuitry 502 is furtherconfigured to process each of the spectrum chunks 516(1)-516(S) based onthe processing circuitry resource allocated to the spectrum chunk516(1)-516(S). The usage of the processing circuitry resource isdetermined based on system analysis of required channels that need to berouted to the remote unit 408(1) versus available processing resourcesat the central unit 406 and the remote unit 408(1), as well as availablebandwidth in the downlink communication links 414(1) and/or the uplinkcommunication link 424(1). In a non-limiting example, the discretechannels 508(1)-508(K) are provided to the remote unit 408(1) based onthe conventional channel grouping scheme 200 of FIG. 2A, and thepredefined total remote unit processing circuitry resources of theremote unit 408(1) are fully utilized. As such, if additional discretechannels need to be added to the remote unit 408(1), the remote unitresource configuration system 404(1) in the remote unit 408(1) will notbe able to perform required signal processing for the additionaldiscrete channels. Hence, the central unit resource configuration system402 can bundle the discrete channels 508(1)-508(K) into the downlinkspectrum chunks 516(1)-516(S) and provide the downlink spectrum chunks516(1)-516(S) to the remote unit 408(1). As a result, the remote unit408(1) will process a reduced number of the discrete channels508(1)-508(K), thus freeing digital processing resources for processingthe additional discrete channels. By assigning the predefined totalremote unit processing circuitry resource to the spectrum chunks516(1)-516(S), it is possible to avoid underutilization oroverutilization of the predefined total processing circuitry resource ofthe processing circuitry 502, thus optimizing resource utilization inthe processing circuitry 502.

The resource configuration system 500 also includes a distributioncircuit 518. In a non-limiting example, the distribution circuit 518 isa constructor/de-constructor circuit. The distribution circuit 518 isconfigured to generate the outgoing digital signals 506(1)-506(F). In anon-limiting example, the distribution circuit 518 assigns at least onespectrum chunk among the spectrum chunks 516(1)-516(S) to each of theoutgoing digital signals 506(1)-506(F).

The resource configuration system 500 is configured to optimize resourceutilization in the processing circuitry 502 based on a processingcircuitry resource allocation process. In this regard, FIG. 6 is aflowchart of an exemplary process 600 of the resource configurationsystem 500 of FIG. 5 for allocating processing resources.

With reference to FIG. 6, the processing circuitry resource allocationprocess 600 begins with determining the predefined total processingcircuitry resource for processing the incoming digital signals504(1)-504(J) (block 602). In a non-limiting example, the predefinedtotal processing circuitry resource of the processing circuitry isdetermined based on specifications of processing components such asFPGA, DSP, CPU, etc. As previously discussed in FIG. 5, the incomingdigital signals 504(1)-504(J) include the digital streams 510(1)-510(K)conveying the discrete channels 508(1)-508(K). The processing circuitry502 receives the incoming digital signals 504(1)-504(J) (block 604). Theprocessing circuitry 502 then allocates each of the discrete channels508(1)-508(K) to an assigned spectrum chunk based on a spectrum chunkmap 514 that includes the spectrum chunks 516(1)-516(S) (block 606).According to previous discussions in FIG. 5, each of the spectrum chunks516(1)-516(S) is assigned with at least one discrete channel among thediscrete channels 508(1)-508(K). Further according to previousdiscussions in FIG. 5, each of the spectrum chunks 516(1)-516(S) isallocated a processing circuitry resource that is less than or equal tothe predefined total processing circuitry resource of the processingcircuitry 502. The processing circuitry 502 processes each of thespectrum chunks 516(1)-516(S) based on the processing circuitry resourceallocated to the spectrum chunk 516(1)-516(S) (block 608). Thedistribution circuit 518 then generates the outgoing digital signals506(1)-506(F), wherein each of the outgoing digital signals506(1)-506(F) includes at least one spectrum chunk among the spectrumchunks 516(1)-516(S) (block 610). In a non-limiting example, the atleast one spectrum chunk included in each of the outgoing digitalsignals 506(1)-506(F) are determined by the configuration controller 436and stored in the memory 512. In another non-limiting example, theconfiguration controller 436 determines the at least one spectrum chunkto be included in each of the outgoing digital signals 506(1)-506(F)based on the wireless services provided by the remote unit 408(1) ofFIG. 4.

With reference back to FIG. 4, in the downlink path 410, the resourceconfiguration system 500 of FIG. 5 is provided in the central unit 406to function as the central unit resource configuration system 402. Assuch, according to previous discussions in FIG. 5, the central unitresource configuration system 402 includes the processing circuitry 502of FIG. 5. Accordingly, the processing circuitry 502 in the central unitresource configuration system 402 provides a predefined total centralunit processing circuitry resource, which is equivalent to theprocessing circuitry resource as discussed in FIG. 5, for processing thedownlink digital signals 430(1)-430(M) that include the discretedownlink channels 432(1)-432(K). The processing circuitry 502 in thecentral unit resource configuration system 402 includes the spectrumchunk map 514 of FIG. 5, which is referred to as the downlink spectrumchunk map 514 in context of the central unit 406, stored in the memory512. The downlink spectrum chunk map 514 includes the spectrum chunks516(1)-516(S) of FIG. 5 that are referred to as the downlink spectrumchunks 516(1)-516(S) in the context of the central unit 406. The centralunit resource configuration system 402 also includes the distributioncircuit 518 of FIG. 5.

The configuration controller 436 determines the downlink spectrum chunkmap 514 for the central unit resource configuration system 402 based onthe predefined spectrum-chunking algorithm. The configuration controller436 assigns at least one discrete downlink channel among the discretedownlink channels 432(1)-432(K) to each of the downlink spectrum chunks516(1)-516(S). The configuration controller 436 allocates a central unitprocessing circuitry resource that is less than or equal to thepredefined total central unit processing circuitry resource in thecentral unit resource configuration system 402 to each of the downlinkspectrum chunks 516(1)-516(S). In this regard, when the central unitresource configuration system 402 receives the downlink digital signals430(1)-430(M), the central unit resource configuration system 402allocates each of the discrete downlink channels 432(1)-432(K) to anassigned downlink spectrum chunk based on the downlink spectrum chunkmap 514. The processing circuitry 502 in the central unit resourceconfiguration system 402 processes each of the downlink spectrum chunks516(1)-516(S) based on the central unit processing circuitry resourceallocated to the downlink spectrum chunk. The distribution circuit 518in the central unit resource configuration system 402 generates thedownlink digital communications signals 412(1)-412(N). Each of thedownlink digital communications signals 412(1)-412(N) includes at leastone of the downlink spectrum chunks 516(1)-516(S).

As discussed above, the configuration controller 436 determines thedownlink spectrum chunk map 514 for the central unit resourceconfiguration system 402 based on the predefined spectrum-chunkingalgorithm. In this regard, FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of an exemplaryspectrum-chunking engine 700 that is employed by the configurationcontroller 436 of FIG. 4 to implement the predefined spectrum-chunkingalgorithm for allocating the digital channels associated with thecommunications signals into the spectrum chunks.

With reference to FIG. 7, the spectrum-chunking engine 700 may beprovided in a microprocessor or a microcontroller (not shown), forexample. In a non-limiting example, the predefined spectrum-chunkingalgorithm includes a set of predefined tests stored in a storage media(e.g., memory) or in the resource allocation policy database 438 of FIG.4. The spectrum-chunking engine 700 determines how the discrete channels508(1)-508(K) of FIG. 5 will be grouped to the spectrum chunks516(1)-516(S) in the spectrum chunk map 514. In a non-limiting example,the spectrum-chunking engine 700 determines how the discrete channels508(1)-508(K) are grouped into the spectrum chunks 516(1)-516(S) usingthe same algorithm for defining the spectrum chunks 516(1)-516(S) in thespectrum chunk map 514. The spectrum-chunking engine 700 also determinesallocation of the predefined processing circuitry resource of FIG. 5 tothe spectrum chunks 516(1)-516(S). In addition, the spectrum-chunkingengine 700 may also be configured to determine a graceful degradationscheme, which involves reducing the number of bits in the downlinkdigital streams 434(1)-434(K) and the uplink digital streams442(1)-442(K) of FIG. 4 to ease bandwidth requirement on the downlinkcommunication links 414(1)-414(N) and the uplink communication links424(1)-424(N).

As mentioned above, the predefined spectrum-chunking algorithm mayoptionally include the set of predefined tests. In a non-limitingexample, the predefined spectrum-chunking algorithm includes a pluralityof tests 702(1)-702(7). The test 702(1) is set to determine thefrequencies and bandwidths of the downlink communication links414(1)-414(N) and the uplink communication links 424(1)-424(N). The test702(2) is set to determine whether the predefined total central unitprocessing circuitry resource and the predefined total remote unitprocessing circuitry resource is overutilized or underutilized. In otherwords, the test 702(2) is set to determine resource availability in thecentral unit 406 and the remote unit 408(1) of FIG. 4. The test 702(3)is set to determine maximum data rates of the downlink communicationlinks 414(1)-414(N) and the uplink communication links 424(1)-424(N).The test 702(4) is set to determine which of the discrete downlinkchannels 432(1)-432(K) and the discrete uplink channels 440(1)-440(K)cannot be assigned to the spectrum chunks 516(1)-516(S). The test 702(5)is set to determine which of the discrete downlink channels432(1)-432(K) and the discrete uplink channels 440(1)-440(K) cantolerate the graceful degradation scheme, as discussed above. The test702(6) is set to check the predefined resource allocation policy storedin the resource allocation policy database 438. The test 702(7) is setto determine a capacity distribution scheme, which may be derived fromthe predefined resource allocation policy.

To further illustrate the predefined resource allocation policy that isrelevant to the tests 702(6)-702(7), FIG. 8 is a table 800 providing anexemplary illustration of the predefined resource allocation policy ofFIG. 4 that the configuration controller 436 can use to configure thecentral unit resource configuration system 402 and the remote unitresource configuration systems 404(1)-404(N) for optimizing systemresource utilization in the WDS 400 of FIG. 4. Common elements betweenFIGS. 4 and 8 are shown therein with common element numbers and will notbe re-described herein.

With reference to FIG. 8, the table 800, which defines a data structurefor storing the predefined resource allocation policy in the resourceallocation policy database 438, includes a first column 802, a secondcolumn 804, and a third column 806. The first column 802 providescommunications link identifiers. The second column 804 lists frequencychannels occupied by a communications signal (e.g., the downlink digitalcommunications signal 412(1) or the uplink digital communications signal422(1)). The third column 806 includes the predefined resourceallocation policy.

The table 800 includes a plurality of rows 808(1)-808(M), eachcorresponding to a respective communications link among the downlinkcommunication links 414(1)-414(N) and the uplink communication links424(1)-424(N), Link 1-Link M in this example, configured to communicatethe downlink digital communications signals 412(1)-412(N) and the uplinkdigital communications signals 422(1)-422(N). For example, the row808(1) corresponds to the downlink communication link 414(1). In the row808(1), the second column 804 indicates that the downlink digitalcommunications signal 412(1) occupies channels 642, 435, 455, 342, and550. The third column 806 includes the predefined resource allocationpolicies for the downlink communication link 414(1). In a non-limitingexample, two predefined resource allocation policies are defined for thedownlink communication link 414(1). First, channel 642 is eliminatedfrom the downlink digital communications signal 412(1) if the downlinkcommunication link 414(1) does not have sufficient bandwidth tocommunicate the downlink digital communications signal 412(1). Next, ifthe downlink communication link 414(1) is still unable to providesufficient bandwidth to support the downlink digital communicationssignal 412(1), channel 455 is further eliminated from the downlinkcommunication link 414(1).

With continuing reference to FIG. 8, the predefined resource allocationpolicies may vary between different communications links among thedownlink communication links 414(1)-414(N) and the uplink communicationlinks 424(1)-424(N). In another non-limiting example, the third column806 in the row 808(2) defines that, if Link 2 is unable to provide arequired capacity (e.g., data throughput), one of the multiple-inputmultiple-output (MIMO) streams associated with channel 442 is omitted.If Link 2 is still unable to provide the required capacity, one of theMIMO streams associated with channel 485 is further omitted.

In another non-limiting example, the third column 806 in the row 808(3)defines that, if Link 3 is unable to provide a required capacity, thenan activate compression algorithm will be applied on in-phase (I) andquadrature (Q) (I/Q) samples communicated on channels 440 and 480. Inanother non-limiting example, the third column 806 in the row 808(M)defines that, if Link M is unable to provide a required capacity, thenthe number of bits used for the downlink digital communications signal412(1) or the uplink digital communications signal 422(1) is reduced(e.g., reducing the number of bits from fourteen (14) bits to ten (10)bits). If Link M is still unable to provide the required capacity, thenchannel 410 is eliminated.

With reference back to FIG. 4, in the downlink path 410, in onenon-limiting example, the central unit resource configuration system 402receives one or more downlink digital signals 430(1)-430(L) among thedownlink digital signals 430(1)-430(M), wherein L≤M, from one or moredigital signal sources 444(1)-444(L). In a non-limiting example, thedigital signal sources 444(1)-444(L) are BBUs, and the downlink digitalsignals 430(1)-430(L) are based on a CPRI communication protocol. Inanother non-limiting example, the central unit 406 includes at least onecentral unit ADC/DAC circuit 446. The central unit ADC/DAC circuit 446receives one or more downlink analog signals 448(1)-448(G) from one ormore analog signal sources 450(1)-450(G). In a non-limiting example, theanalog signal sources 450(1)-450(G) are base transceiver stations(BTSs). The central unit ADC/DAC circuit 446 converts the downlinkanalog signals 448(1)-448(G) into the downlink digital signals430(L+1)-430(M) among the downlink digital signals 430(1)-430(M). Thecentral unit resource configuration system 402 receives the downlinkdigital signals 430(L+1)-430(M) from the central unit ADC/DAC circuit446. It shall be appreciated that the central unit resourceconfiguration system 402 may receive the downlink digital signals430(1)-430(L), the downlink analog signals 448(1)-448(G), or acombination of the downlink digital signals 430(1)-430(L) and thedownlink analog signals 448(1)-448(G).

With continuing reference to FIG. 4, the remote unit 408(1) receives thedownlink digital communications signal 412(1) from the central unit 406over the downlink communication link 414(1). As previously discussed,the downlink digital communications signal 412(1) may include at leastone downlink spectrum chunk among the downlink spectrum chunks516(1)-516(S) in the downlink spectrum chunk map 514, and the at leastone downlink spectrum chunk is assigned at least one discrete downlinkchannel among the discrete downlink channels 432(1)-432(K). As such, theremote unit 408(1) is configured to process the at least one downlinkspectrum chunk received in the downlink digital communications signal412(1).

In this regard, FIG. 9A is a schematic diagram providing an exemplaryillustration of the remote unit 408(1) among the remote units408(1)-408(N) in the WDS 400 of FIG. 4 configured to process thedownlink digital communications signal 412(1) among the downlink digitalcommunications signals 412(1)-412(N) received from the central unit 406.Common elements between FIGS. 4 and 9A are shown therein with commonelement numbers and will not be re-described herein.

With reference to FIG. 9A, in a non-limiting example, the downlinkdigital communications signal 412(1) includes at least one firstdownlink spectrum chunk 900(1), at least one second downlink spectrumchunk 900(2), and at least one third downlink spectrum chunk 900(3). Thefirst downlink spectrum chunk 900(1) includes a first discrete downlinkchannel 904(1) and a second discrete downlink channel 904(2). The firstdiscrete downlink channel 904(1) and the second discrete downlinkchannel 904(2) provide a first remote unit downlink digital signal906(1) and a second remote unit downlink digital signal 906(2),respectively. The first discrete downlink channel 904(1) and the seconddiscrete downlink channel 904(2) are already positioned at a predefinedfrequency 908, which is equal to zero (0), for example. As such, whenthe remote unit 408(1) determines that the first discrete downlinkchannel 904(1) and the second discrete downlink channel 904(2) arealready positioned at the predefined frequency 908, at least one firstDAC 910(1) in the remote unit 408(1) is configured to convert the firstremote unit downlink digital signal 906(1) and the second remote unitdownlink digital signal 906(2) to generate a first downlink RF signal912(1). At least one first analog mixer 914(1) is configured tofrequency shift the first downlink RF signal 912(1) to a first carrierfrequency f₁. At least one first bandpass filter 916(1) is configured toreduce out-of-channel emissions in the first downlink RF signal 912(1)that fall outside the first discrete downlink channel 904(1) and thesecond discrete downlink channel 904(2).

With continuing reference to FIG. 9A, the second downlink spectrum chunk900(2) includes a third discrete downlink channel 904(3) that provides athird remote unit downlink digital signal 906(3). The third downlinkspectrum chunk 900(3) includes a fourth discrete downlink channel 904(4)that provides a fourth remote unit downlink digital signal 906(4).Unlike the first discrete downlink channel 904(1) and the seconddiscrete downlink channel 904(2), the third discrete downlink channel904(3) and the fourth discrete downlink channel 904(4) are notpositioned at the predefined frequency 908. As such, when the remoteunit 408(1) determines that the third discrete downlink channel 904(3)and the fourth discrete downlink channel 904(4) are not positioned atthe predefined frequency 908, the remote unit 408(1) is configured toshift the third discrete downlink channel 904(3) and the fourth discretedownlink channel 904(4) to the predefined frequency 908.

In this regard, the remote unit 408(1) includes a first digitalup-converter (DUC) 918(1) and a second DUC 918(2). The first DUC 918(1)is configured to shift the third discrete downlink channel 904(3) to thepredefined frequency 908. The second DUC 918(2) is configured to shiftthe fourth discrete downlink channel 904(4) to the predefined frequency908. At least one digital combiner 920 is configured to combine thethird remote unit downlink digital signal 906(3) and the fourth remoteunit downlink digital signal 906(4) to generate at least one combinedremote unit downlink digital signal 922, which occupies both the thirddiscrete downlink channel 904(3) and the fourth discrete downlinkchannel 904(4). The remote unit 408(1) includes at least one second DAC910(2) configured to convert the combined remote unit downlink digitalsignal 922 to generate a second downlink RF signal 912(2). At least onesecond analog mixer 914(2) is configured to frequency shift the seconddownlink RF signal 912(2) to a second carrier frequency f₂. At least onesecond bandpass filter 916(2) is configured to reduce out-of-channelemissions in the second downlink RF signal 912(2) that fall outside thethird discrete downlink channel 904(3) and the fourth discrete downlinkchannel 904(4). In a non-limiting example, the first downlink RF signal912(1) and the second downlink RF signal 912(2) are included in thedownlink RF communications signal 416(1).

With continuing reference to FIG. 9A, each of the first remote unitdownlink digital signal 906(1), the second remote unit downlink digitalsignal 906(2), the third remote unit downlink digital signal 906(3), andthe fourth remote unit downlink digital signal 906(4) may include anI-component and a Q-component. In this regard, the first DAC 910(1) isconfigured to convert the first remote unit downlink digital signal906(1) and the second remote unit downlink digital signal 906(2) intothe first downlink RF signal 912(1) by converting separately theI-components and the Q-components of the first remote unit downlinkdigital signal 906(1) and the second remote unit downlink digital signal906(2). Likewise, the second DAC 910(2) is configured to convert thethird remote unit downlink digital signal 906(3) and the fourth remoteunit downlink digital signal 906(4) into the second downlink RF signal912(2) by converting separately the I-components and the Q-components ofthe third remote unit downlink digital signal 906(3) and the fourthremote unit downlink digital signal 906(4). Similarly, the first DUC918(1) is configured to shift the I-component and the Q-component of thethird remote unit downlink digital signal 906(3) in the third discretedownlink channel 904(3) separately. Likewise, the second DUC 918(2) isconfigured to shift the I-component and the Q-component of the fourthremote unit downlink digital signal 906(4) in the fourth discretedownlink channel 904(4) separately.

In a non-limiting example, the first analog mixer 914(1) and the secondanalog mixer 914(2) are analog I/Q de-modulators. In this regard, FIG.9B is a schematic diagram of an exemplary analog I/Q de-modulator 924that can be provided in the remote unit 408(1) of FIG. 9A. Commonelements between FIGS. 4, 9A and 9B are shown therein with commonelement numbers and will not be re-described herein.

With reference to FIG. 9B, the analog I/Q de-modulator 924 can beprovided in the remote unit 408(1) of FIG. 9A as the first analog mixer914(1) and/or the second analog mixer 914(2). The analog I/Qde-modulator 924 includes an I-signal mixer 926 and a Q-signal mixer928. The analog I/Q de-modulator 924 receives the first downlink RFsignal 912(1) and/or the second downlink RF signal 912(2) that includesan I-signal 930 and a Q-signal 932. The I-signal mixer 926 and theQ-signal mixer 928 shift the I-signal 930 and the Q-signal 932,respectively, to a carrier frequency (e.g., the first carrier frequencyf₁ or the second carrier frequency f₂ of FIG. 9A) based on an oscillator934. A combiner 936 combines the I-signal 930 and the Q-signal 932 togenerate the first downlink RF signal 912(1) at the first carrierfrequency f₁ and/or the second downlink RF signal 912(2) at the secondcarrier frequency f₂.

With reference back to FIG. 4, in the uplink path 418, the resourceconfiguration system 500 of FIG. 5 is provided in the remote unit 408(1)to function as the remote unit resource configuration system 404(1). Assuch, according to previous discussions in FIG. 5, the remote unitresource configuration system 404(1) includes the processing circuitry502 of FIG. 5. Accordingly, the processing circuitry 502 in the remoteunit resource configuration system 404(1) provides the predefined totalremote unit processing circuitry resource, which is equivalent to theprocessing circuitry resource as discussed in FIG. 5, for processing theuplink digital signals 439(1)-439(P) that include the discrete uplinkchannels 440(1)-440(K). In a non-limiting example, it is possible toallocate separate processing resources (e.g., via a second FPGA, DSP,CPU, etc.) in the remote unit 408(1) for processing the uplink digitalsignals 439(1)-439(P). In this regard, the predefined total remote unitprocessing circuitry resource of the remote unit 408(1) includes aremote unit downlink processing circuitry resource and a remote unituplink processing circuitry resource. The processing circuitry 502 inthe remote unit resource configuration system 404(1) includes thespectrum chunk map 514 of FIG. 5, which is referred to as the uplinkspectrum chunk map 514 in context of the remote unit 408(1), stored inthe memory 512. The uplink spectrum chunk map 514 includes the spectrumchunks 516(1)-516(S) of FIG. 5 that are referred to as the uplinkspectrum chunks 516(1)-516(S) in the context of the remote unit 408(1).The remote unit resource configuration system 404(1) also includes thedistribution circuit 518 of FIG. 5 for generating the uplink digitalcommunications signal 422(1).

The configuration controller 436 determines the uplink spectrum chunkmap 514 for the remote unit resource configuration system 404(1) basedon the predefined spectrum-chunking algorithm. The configurationcontroller 436 assigns at least one discrete uplink channel among thediscrete uplink channels 440(1)-440(K) to each of the uplink spectrumchunks 516(1)-516(S). The configuration controller 436 allocates aremote unit processing circuitry resource that is less than or equal tothe predefined total remote unit processing circuitry resource in theremote unit resource configuration system 404(1) to each of the uplinkspectrum chunks 516(1)-516(S). In this regard, when the remote unitresource configuration system 404(1) receives the uplink digital signals439(1)-439(P), the remote unit resource configuration system 404(1)allocates each of the discrete uplink channels 440(1)-440(K) to anassigned uplink spectrum chunk based on the uplink spectrum chunk map514. The processing circuitry 502 in the remote unit resourceconfiguration system 404(1) processes each of the uplink spectrum chunks516(1)-516(S) based on the remote unit processing circuitry resourceallocated to the uplink spectrum chunk. The distribution circuit 518 inthe remote unit resource configuration system 404(1) generates theuplink digital communications signal 422(1). The uplink digitalcommunications signals 422(1) includes one or more of the spectrumchunks 516(1)-516(S).

With continuing reference to FIG. 4, the remote unit 408(1) generatesthe uplink digital communications signal 422(1) based on the uplink RFcommunications signal 420(1) received from the client devices. In thisregard, FIG. 10A is a schematic diagram providing an exemplaryillustration of the remote unit 408(1) among the remote units408(1)-408(N) in the WDS 400 of FIG. 4 configured to generate the uplinkdigital communications signal 422(1) based on the uplink RFcommunications signal 420(1). Common elements between FIGS. 4 and 10Aare shown therein with common element numbers and will not bere-described herein.

With reference to FIG. 10A, in a non-limiting example, the uplink RFcommunications signal 420(1) includes at least one first uplink RFsignal 1000 and at least one second uplink RF signal 1002. The firstuplink RF signal 1000 is received at a first carrier frequency f₁, andthe second uplink RF signal 1002 is received at a second carrierfrequency f₂. The first uplink RF signal 1000 includes a first discreteuplink channel 1004(1) and a second discrete uplink channel 1004(2). Thesecond uplink RF signal 1002 includes a third discrete uplink channel1004(3) and a fourth discrete uplink channel 1004(4). At least one firstuplink bandpass filter 1006(1) and at least one second uplink bandpassfilter 1006(2) filter the first uplink RF signal 1000 and the seconduplink RF signal 1002, respectively.

The remote unit 408(1) includes at least one first analog mixer 1008(1)and at least one second analog mixer 1008(2). The first analog mixer1008(1) is configured to frequency shift the first uplink RF signal 1000from the first carrier frequency f₁ to a predefined frequency 1010,which is equal to zero (0), for example. The second analog mixer 1008(2)is configured to frequency shift the second uplink RF signal 1002 fromthe second carrier frequency f₂ to the predefined frequency 1010. Theremote unit 408(1) includes at least one first ADC 1012(1) and at leastone second ADC 1012(2). The first ADC 1012(1) converts the first uplinkRF signal 1000 into at least one first uplink digital signal 1014(1),which is among the uplink digital signals 439(1)-439(P) of FIG. 4. Thefirst uplink digital signal 1014(1) includes the first discrete uplinkchannel 1004(1) and the second discrete uplink channel 1004(2).

The second ADC 1012(2) converts the second uplink RF signal 1002 into atleast one combined uplink digital signal 1016. The remote unit 408(1)includes a digital splitter 1018 configured to split the combined uplinkdigital signal 1016 into a second uplink digital signal 1014(2) and athird uplink digital signal 1014(3). The second uplink digital signal1014(2) includes the third discrete uplink channel 1004(3). The thirduplink digital signal 1014(3) includes the fourth discrete uplinkchannel 1004(4). The remote unit 408(1) includes a first digitaldown-converter (DDC) 1020(1) and a second DDC 1020(2). The first DDC1020(1) down-shifts the third discrete uplink channel 1004(3) in thesecond uplink digital signal 1014(2) from the predefined frequency 1010to a first down-shifted frequency 1022(1). The second DDC 1020(2)down-shifts the fourth discrete uplink channel 1004(4) in the thirduplink digital signal 1014(3) from the predefined frequency 1010 to asecond down-shifted frequency 1022(2). The second uplink digital signal1014(2) and the third uplink digital signal 1014(3) are among the uplinkdigital signals 439(1)-439(P) of FIG. 4.

With continuing reference to FIG. 10A, each of the second uplink digitalsignal 1014(2) and the third uplink digital signal 1014(3) may includean I-component and a Q-component. In this regard, the first DDC 1020(1)is configured to shift the I-component and the Q-component of the seconduplink digital signal 1014(2) separately. Likewise, the second DDC1020(2) is configured to shift the I-component and the Q-component ofthe third uplink digital signal 1014(3) separately.

In a non-limiting example, the first analog mixer 1008(1) and the secondanalog mixer 1008(2) are analog I/Q modulators. In this regard, FIG. 10Bis a schematic diagram of an exemplary analog I/Q modulator 1024 thatcan be provided in the remote unit 408(1) of FIG. 10A. Common elementsbetween FIGS. 10A and 10B are shown therein with common element numbersand will not be re-described herein.

With reference to FIG. 10B, the analog I/Q modulator 1024 can beprovided in the remote unit 408(1) of FIG. 10A as the first analog mixer1008(1) and/or the second analog mixer 1008(2). The analog I/Q modulator1024 includes a splitter 1026 that splits each of the first uplink RFsignal 1000 and the second uplink RF signal 1002 into an I-signal 1028and a Q-signal 1030. The analog I/Q modulator 1024 includes an I-signalmixer 1032 and a Q-signal mixer 1034. The I-signal mixer 1032 and theQ-signal mixer 1034 are configured to shift the I-signal 1028 and theQ-signal 1030, respectively, to the predefined frequency 1010 of FIG.10A based on an oscillator 1036.

With reference back to FIG. 4, in a non-limiting example, the centralunit 406 includes at least one central unit electrical-to-optical (E/O)converter 452. The central unit E/O converter 452 is configured toconvert the downlink digital communications signals 412(1)-412(N) into aplurality of optical downlink digital communications signals454(1)-454(N), respectively. The remote units 408(1)-408(N) include aplurality of remote unit optical-to-electrical (O/E) converters456(1)-456(N). The remote unit O/E converters 456(1)-456(N) areconfigured to convert the optical downlink digital communicationssignals 454(1)-454(N) into the downlink digital communications signals412(1)-412(N), respectively.

The remote units 408(1)-408(N) include a plurality of remote unit E/Oconverters 458(1)-458(N). The remote unit E/O converters 458(1)-458(N)convert the uplink digital communications signals 422(1)-422(N) into aplurality of optical uplink digital communications signals460(1)-460(N), respectively. The central unit 406 includes at least onecentral unit O/E converter 462 configured to convert to convert theoptical uplink digital communications signals 460(1)-460(N) into theuplink digital communications signals 422(1)-422(N), respectively.

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram of an exemplary optical fiber-based WDS1100 that can include the central unit resource configuration system 402and the remote unit resource configuration systems 404(1)-404(N) of FIG.4 for allocating digital channels associated with communications signalsinto assigned spectrum chunks based on a predefined spectrum-chunkingalgorithm and a predefined resource allocation policy. The opticalfiber-based WDS 1100 includes an optical fiber for distributingcommunications services for multiple frequency bands. The opticalfiber-based WDS 1100 in this example is comprised of three (3) maincomponents. One or more radio interfaces provided in the form of RIMs1102(1)-1102(M) are provided in a central unit 1104 to receive andprocess downlink electrical communications signals 1106D(1)-1106D(R)prior to optical conversion into downlink optical fiber-basedcommunications signals. The downlink electrical communications signals1106D(1)-1106D(R) may be received from a base station (not shown) as anexample. The RIMs 1102(1)-1102(M) provide both downlink and uplinkinterfaces for signal processing. The notations “1-R” and “1-M” indicatethat any number of the referenced component, 1-R and 1-M, respectively,may be provided. The central unit 1104 is configured to accept theplurality of RIMs 1102(1)-1102(M) as modular components that can easilybe installed and removed or replaced in the central unit 1104. In oneexample, the central unit 1104 is configured to support up to twelve(12) RIMs 1102(1)-1102(12). Each RIM 1102(1)-1102(M) can be designed tosupport a particular type of signal source or range of signal sources(i.e., frequencies) to provide flexibility in configuring the centralunit 1104 and the optical fiber-based WDS 1100 to support the desiredsignal sources.

For example, one RIM 1102 may be configured to support the PersonalCommunication Services (PCS) radio band. Another RIM 1102 may beconfigured to support the 800 MHz radio band. In this example, byinclusion of these RIMs 1102, the central unit 1104 could be configuredto support and distribute communications signals on both PCS and LTE 700radio bands, as an example. RIMs 1102 may be provided in the centralunit 1104 that support any frequency bands desired, including but notlimited to the US Cellular band, PCS band, Advanced Wireless Services(AWS) band, 700 MHz band, Global System for Mobile communications (GSM)900, GSM 1800, and Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS).The RIMs 1102(1)-1102(M) may also be provided in the central unit 1104that support any wireless technologies desired, including but notlimited to Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), CDMA200, 1×RTT,Evolution-Data Only (EV-DO), UMTS, High-speed Packet Access (HSPA), GSM,General Packet Radio Services (GPRS), Enhanced Data GSM Environment(EDGE), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Long Term Evolution (LTE),iDEN, and Cellular Digital Packet Data (CDPD).

The RIMs 1102(1)-1102(M) may be provided in the central unit 1104 thatsupport any frequencies desired, including but not limited to US FCC andIndustry Canada frequencies (824-849 MHz on uplink and 869-894 MHz ondownlink), US FCC and Industry Canada frequencies (1850-1915 MHz onuplink and 1930-1995 MHz on downlink), US FCC and Industry Canadafrequencies (1710-1755 MHz on uplink and 2110-2155 MHz on downlink), USFCC frequencies (698-716 MHz and 776-787 MHz on uplink and 728-746 MHzon downlink), EU R & TTE frequencies (880-915 MHz on uplink and 925-960MHz on downlink), EU R & TTE frequencies (1710-1785 MHz on uplink and1805-1880 MHz on downlink), EU R & TTE frequencies (1920-1980 MHz onuplink and 2110-2170 MHz on downlink), US FCC frequencies (806-824 MHzon uplink and 851-869 MHz on downlink), US FCC frequencies (896-901 MHzon uplink and 929-941 MHz on downlink), US FCC frequencies (793-805 MHzon uplink and 763-775 MHz on downlink), and US FCC frequencies(2495-2690 MHz on uplink and downlink).

With continuing reference to FIG. 11, the downlink electricalcommunications signals 1106D(1)-1106D(R) are provided to a plurality ofoptical interfaces provided in the form of optical interface modules(OIMs) 1108(1)-1108(N) in this embodiment to convert the downlinkelectrical communications signals 1106D(1)-1106D(R) into downlinkoptical fiber-based communications signals 1110D(1)-1110D(R). Thenotation “1-N” indicates that any number of the referenced component 1-Nmay be provided. The OIMs 1108(1)-1108(N) may be configured to provideone or more optical interface components (OICs) that contain optical toelectrical (O/E) and electrical to optical (E/O) converters (not shown),as will be described in more detail below. The OIMs 1108(1)-1108(N)support the radio bands that can be provided by the RIMs1102(1)-1102(M), including the examples previously described above.

The OIMs 1108(1)-1108(N) each include E/O converters to convert thedownlink electrical communications signals 1106D(1)-1106D(R) into thedownlink optical fiber-based communications signals 1110D(1)-1110D(R).The downlink optical fiber-based communications signals1110D(1)-1110D(R) are communicated over a downlink optical fiber-basedcommunications medium 1112D to a plurality of remote units1114(1)-1114(S), which may be remote antenna units (“RAUs1114(1)-1114(S)”). The notation “1-S” indicates that any number of thereferenced component 1-S may be provided. O/E converters provided in theremote units 1114(1)-1114(S) convert the downlink optical fiber-basedcommunications signals 1110D(1)-1110D(R) back into the downlinkelectrical communications signals 1106D(1)-1106D(R), which are providedto antennas 1116(1)-1116(S) in the remote units 1114(1)-1114(S) todistribute to client devices (not shown) in the reception range of theantennas 1116(1)-1116(S).

E/O converters are also provided in the remote units 1114(1)-1114(S) toconvert uplink electrical communications signals 1118U(1)-1118U(S)received from client devices through the antennas 1116(1)-1116(S) intouplink optical fiber-based communications signals 1110U(1)-1110U(S). Theremote units 1114(1)-1114(S) communicate the uplink optical fiber-basedcommunications signals 1110U(1)-1110U(S) over an uplink opticalfiber-based communications medium 1112U to the OIMs 1108(1)-1108(N) inthe central unit 1104. The OIMs 1108(1)-1108(N) include O/E convertersthat convert the received uplink optical fiber-based communicationssignals 1110U(1)-1110U(S) into uplink electrical communications signals1120U(1)-1120U(S), which are processed by the RIMs 1102(1)-1102(M) andprovided as uplink electrical communications signals 1120U(1)-1120U(S).The central unit 1104 may provide the uplink electrical communicationssignals 1120U(1)-1120U(S) to a base station or other communicationssystem.

Note that the downlink optical fiber-based communications medium 1112Dand the uplink optical fiber-based communications medium 1112U connectedto each remote unit 1114(1)-1114(S) may be a common optical fiber-basedcommunications medium, wherein for example, wave division multiplexing(WDM) may be employed to provide the downlink optical fiber-basedcommunications signals 1110D(1)-1110D(R) and the uplink opticalfiber-based communications signals 1110U(1)-1110U(S) on the same opticalfiber-based communications medium.

The WDS 400 of FIG. 4 can be provided in a WDS provided in an indoorenvironment, as illustrated in FIG. 12. FIG. 12 is a partial schematiccut-away diagram of an exemplary building infrastructure 1200 in which aWDS(s), including the WDS 400 of FIG. 4 and the optical fiber-based WDS1100 of FIG. 11, is configured to allocate digital channels associatedwith communications signals into spectrum chunks. The buildinginfrastructure 1200 in this embodiment includes a first (ground) floor1202(1), a second floor 1202(2), and a third floor 1202(3). The floors1202(1)-1202(3) are serviced by a central unit 1204 to provide antennacoverage areas 1206 in the building infrastructure 1200. The centralunit 1204, which can include the central unit resource configurationsystem 402 of FIG. 4, is communicatively coupled to a base station 1208to receive downlink communications signals 1210D from the base station1208. The central unit 1204 is communicatively coupled to a plurality ofremote units 1212, which can include the remote unit resourceconfiguration systems 404(1)-404(N) of FIG. 4, to distribute thedownlink communications signals 1210D to the remote units 1212 and toreceive uplink communications signals 1210U from the remote units 1212,as previously discussed above. The downlink communications signals 1210Dand the uplink communications signals 1210U communicated between thecentral unit 1204 and the remote units 1212 are carried over a risercable 1214. The riser cable 1214 may be routed through interconnectunits (ICUs) 1216(1)-1216(3) dedicated to each of the floors1202(1)-1202(3) that route the downlink communications signals 1210D andthe uplink communications signals 1210U to the remote units 1212 andalso provide power to the remote units 1212 via array cables 1218.

The embodiments disclosed herein include controllers (e.g., theconfiguration controller 436 of FIGS. 4 and 5) and modules. Thecontrollers and modules may be provided as microprocessors ormicrocontrollers.

The embodiments disclosed herein include various steps. The steps of theembodiments disclosed herein may be formed by hardware components or maybe embodied in machine-executable instructions, which may be used tocause a general-purpose or special-purpose processor programmed with theinstructions to perform the steps. Alternatively, the steps may beperformed by a combination of hardware and software.

The embodiments disclosed herein may be provided as a computer programproduct, or software, that may include a machine-readable medium (orcomputer-readable medium) having stored thereon instructions, which maybe used to program a computer system (or other electronic devices) toperform a process according to the embodiments disclosed herein. Amachine-readable medium includes any mechanism for storing ortransmitting information in a form readable by a machine (e.g., acomputer). For example, a machine-readable medium includes: amachine-readable storage medium (e.g., ROM, random access memory(“RAM”), a magnetic disk storage medium, an optical storage medium,flash memory devices, etc.), and the like.

Unless otherwise expressly stated, it is in no way intended that anymethod set forth herein be construed as requiring that its steps beperformed in a specific order. Accordingly, where a method claim doesnot actually recite an order to be followed by its steps, or it is nototherwise specifically stated in the claims or descriptions that thesteps are to be limited to a specific order, it is in no way intendedthat any particular order be inferred.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that variousmodifications and variations can be made without departing from thespirit or scope of the invention. Since modifications, combinations,sub-combinations and variations of the disclosed embodimentsincorporating the spirit and substance of the invention may occur topersons skilled in the art, the invention should be construed to includeeverything within the scope of the appended claims and theirequivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for allocating processing circuitryresources in a communications system, comprising: determining apredefined total processing circuitry resource for processing aplurality of incoming digital signals, wherein the plurality of incomingdigital signals comprises a plurality of discrete channels; determiningwhether the predefined total processing circuitry resource isunderutilized; processing the plurality of incoming digital signalsbased at least in party on a channel grouping scheme; allocating each ofthe plurality of discrete channels to a spectrum chunk based at least inpart on a spectrum chunk map comprising one or more spectrum chunks,each of the one or more spectrum chunks assigned with at least onediscrete channel among the plurality of discrete channels and allocateda processing circuitry resource that is less than or equal to thepredefined total processing circuitry resource; processing each of theone or more spectrum chunks based at least in part on the processingcircuitry resource allocated to the spectrum chunk; generating aplurality of outgoing digital signals each comprising at least onespectrum chunk among the one or more spectrum chunks; determining thespectrum chunk map based at least in party on a predefinedspectrum-chunking algorithm; and assigning the plurality of discretechannels to the one or more spectrum chunks comprised in the determinedspectrum chunk map.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprisingallocating the processing circuitry resource to each of the one or morespectrum chunks based at least in party on a predefined resourceallocation policy.
 3. The method of claim 2, further comprisingretrieving the predefined resource allocation policy from a resourceallocation policy database.
 4. The method of claim 2, furthercomprising: receiving a plurality of downlink digital signalscorresponding to a plurality of discrete downlink channels; allocatingeach of the plurality of discrete downlink channels to the assignedspectrum chunk based at least in party on the spectrum chunk map; andprocessing each of the one or more spectrum chunks based at least inparty on the processing circuitry resource allocated to the spectrumchunk.
 5. The method of claim 4, further comprising generating aplurality of downlink digital communications signals each comprising theat least one spectrum chunk among the one or more spectrum chunks. 6.The method of claim 2, further comprising: receiving a plurality ofuplink digital signals corresponding to a plurality of discrete uplinkchannels; and allocating each of the plurality of discrete uplinkchannels to the assigned spectrum chunk based at least in party on thespectrum chunk map.
 7. The method of claim 6, further comprising:processing each of the one or more spectrum chunks based at least inparty on the processing circuitry resource allocated to the spectrumchunk; and generating a plurality of uplink digital communicationssignals each comprising the at least one spectrum chunk among the one ormore spectrum chunks.
 8. A method for allocating processing circuitryresources in a communications system, comprising: determining apredefined total processing circuitry resource for processing theplurality of incoming digital signals, wherein a plurality of incomingdigital signals comprises a plurality of discrete channels; determiningwhether the predefined total processing circuitry resource isunderutilized; processing the plurality of incoming digital signals inresponse to determining that the predefined total processing circuitryresource is underutilized; allocating each of the plurality of discretechannels to a spectrum chunk based at least in party on a spectrum chunkmap comprising one or more spectrum chunks, each of the one or morespectrum chunks assigned with at least one discrete channel among theplurality of discrete channels and allocated a processing circuitryresource that is less than or equal to the predefined total processingcircuitry resource; processing the one or more spectrum chunks based atleast in party on the processing circuitry resource allocated to thespectrum chunk; generating a plurality of outgoing digital signals eachcomprising at least one spectrum chunk among the one or more spectrumchunks; and determining the spectrum chunk map based at least in partyon a predefined spectrum-chunking algorithm.
 9. The method of claim 8,further comprising: determining the spectrum chunk map based at least inparty on a predefined spectrum-chunking algorithm; and assigning theplurality of discrete channels to the one or more spectrum chunkscomprised in the determined spectrum chunk map.
 10. The method of claim9, further comprising allocating the processing circuitry resource toeach of the one or more spectrum chunks based at least in party on apredefined resource allocation policy.
 11. The method of claim 10,further comprising retrieving the predefined resource allocation policyfrom a resource allocation policy database.
 12. The method of claim 9,further comprising: receiving a plurality of downlink digital signalscorresponding to a plurality of discrete downlink channels; andallocating each of the plurality of discrete downlink channels to theassigned spectrum chunk based at least in party on the spectrum chunkmap.
 13. The method of claim 12, further comprising: processing each ofthe one or more spectrum chunks based at least in party on theprocessing circuitry resource allocated to the spectrum chunk; andgenerating a plurality of downlink digital communications signals eachcomprising the at least one spectrum chunk among the one or morespectrum chunks.
 14. The method of claim 9, further comprising:receiving a plurality of uplink digital signals corresponding to aplurality of discrete uplink channels; and allocating each of theplurality of discrete uplink channels to the assigned spectrum chunkbased at least in party on the spectrum chunk map.
 15. The method ofclaim 14, further comprising: processing each of the one or morespectrum chunks based at least in party on the processing circuitryresource allocated to the spectrum chunk; and generating a plurality ofuplink digital communications signals each comprising the at least onespectrum chunk among the one or more spectrum chunks.
 16. A method forallocating processing circuitry resources a communications system,comprising: determining a total processing circuitry resource forprocessing the plurality of incoming digital signals, wherein theplurality of incoming digital signals comprises a plurality of discretechannels; determining whether the total processing circuitry resource isunderutilized; processing the plurality of incoming digital signalsbased at least in party on a channel grouping scheme in response todetermining that the total processing circuitry resource isunderutilized; allocating the plurality of discrete channels to aspectrum chunk based at least in party on a spectrum chunk mapcomprising one or more spectrum chunks, each of the one or more spectrumchunks assigned with at least one discrete channel among the pluralityof discrete channels and allocated a processing circuitry resource thatis less than or equal to the total processing circuitry resource;processing each of the one or more spectrum chunks based at least inparty on the processing circuitry resource allocated to the spectrumchunk; generating a plurality of outgoing digital signals eachcomprising at least one spectrum chunk among the one or more spectrumchunks determining the spectrum chunk map based at least in party on apredefined spectrum-chunking algorithm; assigning the plurality ofdiscrete channels to the one or more spectrum chunks comprised in thedetermined spectrum chunk map; and allocating the processing circuitryresource to each of the one or more spectrum chunks based at least inparty on a predefined resource allocation policy.
 17. The method ofclaim 16, further comprising: receiving a plurality of downlink digitalsignals corresponding to a plurality of discrete downlink channels; andallocating each of the plurality of discrete downlink channels to theassigned spectrum chunk based at least in party on the spectrum chunkmap.
 18. The method of claim 17, further comprising: processing each ofthe one or more spectrum chunks based at least in party on theprocessing circuitry resource allocated to the spectrum chunk; andgenerating a plurality of downlink digital communications signals eachcomprising the at least one spectrum chunk among the one or morespectrum chunks.
 19. The method of claim 16, further comprising:receiving a plurality of uplink digital signals corresponding to aplurality of discrete uplink channels; and allocating each of theplurality of discrete uplink channels to the assigned spectrum chunkbased at least in party on the spectrum chunk map.
 20. The method ofclaim 19, further comprising: processing each of the one or morespectrum chunks based at least in party on the processing circuitryresource allocated to the spectrum chunk; and generating a plurality ofuplink digital communications signals each comprising the at least onespectrum chunk among the one or more spectrum chunks.